Today is election day. Make sure you get out and vote. Let your voice be heard. These are challenging times for firearms owners. There are many groups and politicians in this country who want to ban all handguns, ban all semi-automatic rifles, and yes, even repeal the Second Amendment. If you believe in the Constitution, believe in the Second Amendment, it is vital that you get to the polls and cast your vote.

There are many other important issues at stake in this election — control of Congress, infrastructure spending, foreign policy, immigration policy, Federal Lands policies, and that’s just on the national level. State and local elections are important too. So be an involved citizen and exercise your right to vote.

Your Vote Is Your Voice

The NRA Institute for Legislative Action states: “Our Second Amendment rights are being threatened by the anti-gun forces like never before. If you have been following the news, more than likely you have seen the fervor with which our opponents are pushing their agenda.

We need America’s Second Amendment supporters to speak out by using their vote on Election Day to reject this anti-freedom agenda and elect lawmakers to office who support the Second Amendment.”

With the Republican (GOP) Convention recently concluded in Cleveland, readers have asked: “What is the official Republican Party position on the Second Amendment and gun rights?” Here is the section of the Republican Platform concerning gun issues, quoted word for word:

The Second Amendment: Our Right to Keep and Bear Arms
We uphold the right of individuals to keep and bear arms, a natural inalienable right that predates the Constitution and is secured by the Second Amendment. Lawful gun ownership enables Americans to exercise their God-given right of self-defense for the safety of their homes, their loved ones, and their communities.

We salute the Republican Congress for defending the right to keep and bear arms by preventing the President from installing a new liberal majority on the Supreme Court. The confirmation to the Court of additional anti-gun justices would eviscerate the Second Amendment’s fundamental protections. Already, local officials in the nation’s capital and elsewhere are defying the Court’s decisions upholding an individual right to bear arms as affirmed by the Supreme Court in Heller and McDonald. We support firearm reciprocity legislation to recognize the right of law-abiding Americans to carry firearms to protect themselves and their families in all 50 states. We support constitutional carry statutes and salute the states that have passed them. We oppose ill-conceived laws that would restrict magazine capacity or ban the sale of the most popular and common modern rifle. We also oppose any effort to deprive individuals of their right to keep and bear arms without due process of law.

We condemn frivolous lawsuits against gun manufacturers and the current Administration’s illegal harassment of firearm dealers. We oppose federal licensing or registration of law-abiding gun owners, registration of ammunition, and restoration of the ill-fated Clinton gun ban. We call for a thorough investigation — by a new Republican administration — of the deadly “Fast and Furious” operation perpetrated by Department of Justice officials who approved and allowed illegal sales of
guns to known violent criminals.

With the Republican (GOP) Convention in full swing in Florida, readers have asked: “What is the official Republican Party position on the Second Amendment and gun rights?” Here is the section of the Republican Platform concerning gun issues, quoted word for word:

“We support the fundamental right to self-defense wherever a law abiding citizen has a legal right to be, and we support federal legislation that would expand the exercise of that right by allowing those with state-issued carry permits to carry firearms in any state that issues such permits to its own residents. Gun ownership is responsible citizenship, enabling Americans to defend their homes and communities. We condemn frivolous lawsuits against gun manufacturers and oppose federal licensing or registration of law-abiding gun owners. We oppose legislation that is intended to restrict our Second Amendment rights by limiting the capacity of clips or magazines or otherwise restoring the ill considered Clinton gun ban.”

We think that language is pretty clear. Some gun rights advocacy groups will be satisfied with this Platform statement, others may believe the Republican Platform does not go far enough in calling for the elimination of existing Federal restrictions on firearms.